In a mesh network, nodes can act as relays for other nodes, as well as transmitting their own data. For example, a node, the source node, may seek to communicate data to another node, the destination node, but the source node may be separated from the destination node by a distance which limits or prevents successful direct communication between the nodes. In a mesh network, the source node can transmit the data to an intermediate node which can then transmit the data to the destination node. In this case, the data is transmitted in two hops from the source node to the destination node. For large networks, data may be transmitted in a number of hops to reach the destination node. This is known as multi-hop communication. The concept of mesh networking can be applied to both wireless and wired networks.
Wireless mesh networking (WMN) enables interconnection of a large number of wireless devices in a locality. Interconnection of smart metering devices in an advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) is an example of WMN. WMN allows multi-hop communications between nodes, and the mesh topology provides a robust and extendable network to reach an access point or router. Wireless mesh networks are already deployed and operational for various applications, for example advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) networks. Other applications could include mesh networks in Smart Cities, content-centric distribution networks and WiFi/sensor networks.